


I Like You a Latte

by MissMorphine



Category: Fire Emblem: Kakusei | Fire Emblem: Awakening
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - College/University, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-15
Updated: 2016-02-15
Packaged: 2018-05-20 17:46:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,463
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6019348
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissMorphine/pseuds/MissMorphine
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Gerome just wants to study in the library and Inigo writes ridiculous nicknames on his coffee cups.</p><p>a play on the tumblr prompt: "you give me a different fake name every time you come into starbucks and I just want to know your real name bc ur cute but here I am scrawling “batman” onto your stupid cappuccino"</p>
            </blockquote>





	I Like You a Latte

**Author's Note:**

> This was supposed to be a Valentine's Day fic, but I'm about one hour too late for that. Well, now it's a discount chocolate day fic instead.

The first thing Gerome noticed about the blue haired barista at the coffee shop in the library on campus was that he never stopped talking. The second thing he noticed is that the barista was actually rather attractive in the rare moment that he shut his mouth.

As it was, Gerome was only at the library to get coffee and study. The theatre major in the room next to his was practicing for Naga knows what, and the paper thin walls made it impossible for Gerome to concentrate. He had assumed that coming to the library would be better for his sanity, but Gerome had been waiting in line for the past ten minutes because the barista at the register was chatting up every single customer.

“Hey there, handsome, what can I get for you?” One look at the Casanova-wannabe’s nametag told Gerome that his name was Inigo. “Are you hungover? I’m just asking because you’re wearing sunglasses inside, and it’s not really that bright outside anyway.” Gerome glared from behind his sunglasses. This boy was making him question if getting coffee was actually worth it.

“Coffee, black,” replied Gerome curtly. He handed over his student id to swipe and grabbed it back hastily to avoid any more conversation with this obnoxious barista. At least the girl who was making the orders was much more productive than Inigo. Gerome was about to reach out for his drink when Inigo took the cup from the girl’s hand and scribbled something on it.

“One coffee, black, for Batman!” Inigo called out. Gerome flushed hotly as the occupants of the café turned to stare at them. The dark haired male grabbed the coffee impatiently and stalked away. He didn’t even look at the coffee cup until he was holed away in the further corner of the top floor of the library.

When he finally looked at the coffee cup to see what the vapid male had written, his face burned; he was grateful that no one was around to witness him blushing as he read the message from Inigo. He had blacked out a few words on the cup’s warning label so it would read “caution: you’re extremely hot.”

This boy was going to make getting coffee a lot more difficult.

 

* * *

 

Over the course of the next three weeks, Gerome was given a new name every time he got his coffee. He had been called Loki, Darth Vader, Dorian Gray, the Phantom of the Opera, Prince Zuko, and Edward Cullen; he was extremely tempted to throw the coffee at Inigo over that last one. As far as Gerome could tell, he was the only one that Inigo had nicknamed -- or at least the only one who had all his nicknames publicly announced.

“Your usual, Mr. Tall, Dark, and Brooding?” asked Inigo cheerfully as Gerome approached the counter. Gerome nearly growled at the latest nickname, but he contained his composure enough to nod his head and hand over his id silently. He walked over to the pickup counter and tapped his fingers.

“One coffee, black, for Gerome!” A female voice called out. Inigo was always the one who called out his drink for him. Gerome looked behind the counter in shock, but Inigo was already waiting on another customer. Gerome took the coffee cup suspiciously before sitting down in the café. There was his name, in bold ink, right above the coffee sleeve. Perhaps Inigo had finally run out of nicknames for him.

Taking a sip of his coffee, Gerome pulled out his laptop and his headphones to begin working on his essay. His concentration was only disrupted when a hand entered his vision to place another cup of coffee and a muffin in front of him. He looked up from his laptop to see Inigo smiling at him from the other side of the tiny table. Without asking, Inigo sat down across from Gerome and waited until the dark haired boy took off his headphones.

“You’ve been sitting here for the past three hours,” Inigo explained, “so you’ve probably got to be hungry. You always drink your coffee black, so you’re probably not into sweets, which eliminates the Danishes and cookies. Banana nut probably isn’t too sweet right? It was that or chocolate chip, and I wasn’t sure if you’d like the chocolate. We don’t really have that many choices, since we’re just the campus library’s café.” Gerome was almost impressed by Inigo’s ability to have a conversation without any input from the other person.

“Thank you for the coffee and food,” Gerome murmured. He picked up the cup and saw that his name was written on this one as well. “How do you know my name? I’ve never told it to you before.” Now that he thought about it, it was rather odd of Inigo to always call out his order for him. This was a campus library, not a chain coffee shop; they never bothered with writing names down.

“Oh, right,” said Inigo. “Your info pops up when your id gets swiped. Your name, your birthday, your picture, which by the way, it’s really unfair that you look so good in your picture. I look hideous in mine. Swiping into any building is so embarrassing when you look like a stoner who forgot how to smile.” If Inigo was fishing for compliments, Gerome wasn’t the person to give it to him. He wasn’t the type who would ask to see his id and comfort him about how it really wasn’t that bad. Inigo didn’t seem to care because he kept talking. Gerome was going to need a lot of coffee just to be able to keep up with Inigo. Maybe that was the reason why Inigo never stopped talking: too much exposure to coffee.

When Gerome picked up the coffee cup to take another sip, the coffee sleeve had slipped enough for him to catch a hint of ink under the paper. Inigo’s eyes widened as Gerome took off the paper sleeve to read what was written underneath.

_I like you a latte. Will you go out with me?_

In terms of pickup lines, that was probably the worst that Gerome had ever heard -- well, technically, seen. He looked across the table at Inigo, who was blushing pink.

“I wasn’t expecting you to find that,” Inigo mumbled. “At least, I wasn’t expecting you to find it while I was still here.” The blue haired boy moaned and slunk down in his chair while Gerome was still staring at the words written on his cup.

“How many people have you tried this on?” asked Gerome, his tone suspicious. Inigo straightened up, looking offended.

“I’ll have you know that you’re the only person I’ve asked out!” Inigo paused, looking around to see everyone in the café staring at them. Gerome moved a hand to rub his temples, trying to will his embarrassment away. “I might flirt a lot, but you’re the only person I’ve actually asked out. If you don’t want to, just say so.” Despite his attempt at sounding nonchalant, Gerome could see how nervous Inigo actually was.

“Why?” Upon seeing Inigo’s confused expression, Gerome clarified. “Why ask me out? Why give me all the strange nicknames?” That had been tugging at his mind for the past three weeks. Why did Inigo choose him as his target?

“Because I’ve thought you were hot since the first time you came in,” said Inigo, “and it was really cute the way you blushed when I called you Batman. I figured if I kept coming up with nicknames for you, I’d get you to pay attention to me.” Gerome was suddenly reminded of kindergarten, how kids would tease the person that they liked. Looking at Inigo and how he was fidgeting in his chair, Gerome couldn’t imagine Inigo actually teasing someone he liked. This Inigo looked nothing like the boy who called out increasingly ridiculous names; he looked…serious.

“Yes,” Gerome said. Inigo stared blankly, his head tilted in confusion. “I’ll go out with you, provided the date has nothing to do with coffee.” Inigo’s face burst into a smile, and he leaned over the table to kiss Gerome. Before Gerome could register what had happened, Inigo had broken away to sit back in his seat, and they could both hear a few scattered whistles throughout the café.

Gerome blushed hotly at the sudden attention and shoved his belongings into his bag. He stood up to leave, but then he paused to offer his hand to the blue haired barista. Inigo was still smiling brightly as they laced their fingers together and went out into the cold. As Inigo huddled closer to Gerome as they walked down the sidewalk, Gerome couldn’t help a small smile of his own.

**Author's Note:**

> I couldn't find a place to fit it in, but Gerome's roommate is Laurent. As you probably guessed, Owain is the next door neighbor who's constantly acting and getting on Gerome's nerves.


End file.
